When Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee Members Amplified White Nationalist Conspiracy Theories

Republican Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have amplified white nationalist great replacement conspiracy theory directly tied to multiple domestic terrorist attacks that have claimed the lives of dozens of Americans over the last several years.

• Ranking Member Lindsey Graham, South Carolina: On July 19, 2021, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), appeared on The Ingraham Angle employing the white nationalist rhetoric claiming, “Joe Biden wants to put  amnesty in the Democrat infrastructure bill that will lead to an invasion.”
• Ted Cruz, Texas: Just days after the terrorist attack in Buffalo, New York, left 10 Americans dead, Sen. Ted Cruz repeatedly echoed the white nationalist conspiracies as the shooter. In the lead of a May 18, 2022, article in the Houston Chronicle, Benjamin Wermund writes, “US. Sen. Ted Cruz is doubling down on “invasion” rhetoric this week that is similar to that espoused by the man accused of killing 10 people in a Buffalo grocery store on Saturday.” 
• Josh Hawley, Missouri: On October 28, 2022, Sen. Josh Hawley sent out a fundraising email that read, “For all the destruction that has come with the border invasion, its EXACTLY what Joe Biden wants.”

Why this matters:

This invasion and replacement conspiracy has repeatedly been the motivating inspiration for repeated acts of political violence and domestic terrorism. It was chanted in the streets of Charlottesville in 2017, posted online before a man murdered 11 in Pittsburgh in 2018, shared in racist screeds before the murder in Poway and the murder of 23 in El Paso in 2019, believed by those who attacked the Capitol in 2021 and copied by the gunman who killed ten people in Buffalo in May in 2022.  Dr. Heidi Beirich, the co-founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, draws a direct connection between the rhetoric and the violence, saying, “When migrants are described as invaders, that leads to violence,” she said. “Because how else does one stop an invasion?”   

While many of the Republicans, including those in the Senate Judiciary Committee, have adopted rhetoric and versions of the great replacement conspiracy theory that are slightly less explicitly racist and anti-Semitic, their rhetoric furthers the same sort of dehumanization that paints non-white migrants as an existential threat.

Meanwhile, the FBI, Attorney General, and Secretary of Homeland Security have all testified that the threat from violent domestic extremists is a leading terrorist concern. In November 2022 and again in December 2022, DHS issued memos warning about threats to migrants and infrastructure at the southern border in response to anti-immigrant-related concerns. 

Outlined below is a running list of examples of Senate Judiciary Committee Members engaging in this dangerous rhetoric. 

NEW EXAMPLES OF MEMBERS AMPLIFYING WHITE NATIONALIST CONSPIRACIES:

• Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
  • 11/30/23 – Press Release: “U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today encouraged Texas Governor Greg Abbott to send illegal immigrants to states whose Senators are opposed to closing loopholes in our asylum laws.  Graham has long warned that these loopholes are incentivizing and leading to the massive invasion we see at our southern border.”
• Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
  • 5/10/23 – Facebook: “Under President Biden over 5,000,000 illegal border crossings have taken place thanks to the administration’s #openborder policies. That is more than the population of #Iowa!”
  • 1/9/24 – Twitter: “8.8 Million &COUNTING illegal crossings at the southern border since Biden took office We are approaching 3 TIMES the size of the entire population of our state of Iowa The sheer numbers of ppl illegally crossing our borders is staggering SECURE THE BORDER”
  • 3/7/24 – Twitter: “Welcome 2Pres Biden’s America where POTUS doesn’t enforce the nations immigration laws The # of illegal immigrant encounters at our southern border since Biden took office = approx 2.5x Iowa’s population”
• Mike Lee (R-UT)
  • 2/9/24 – Press Release: “The Biden administration’s deliberate refusal to enforce the border isn’t just incompetence—it’s a blatant disregard for Americans’ safety. Their attempts to obscure the magnitude of this border invasion are only adding insult to injury and causing significant economic damage.”
  • 2/20/24 – Twitter: “GOP leadership must push for an impeachment trial for DHS Secretary Mayorkas. We cannot allow Chuck Schumer to sweep the Biden administration’s border invasion under the rug. https://t.co/qg1EFCdoF3”
  • 3/22/24 – Press Release: “Grounding the Invasion: Lee’s Bill to Close the Gate on CBP One App Use, Every American needs to show ID to enter our country. So why do we make it simpler for illegal immigrants to come in than for our own people? As our nation grapples with an unprecedented invasion at our southern border, the VALID Act resolves to close the loopholes that have allowed 200,000 illegal immigrants into the country unchecked. The Biden administration’s policies have blatantly facilitated this crisis, encouraging illegal immigration and compromising our nation’s security.”
  • 4/8/24 – Twitter: “For the first time in American history, Chuck Schumer is going to ignore articles of impeachment sent from the House, because he wants to protect Democrats from the consequences of their border invasion.”
  • 4/8/24 – Press Release: “Republicans have respected this process. We were in the majority during President Trump’s first impeachment, in 2020. We fulfilled our constitutional duty and held a full trial on the floor. Now that the shoe is on the other foot, Senate Democrats are trying to destroy yet another precedent and further politicize the impeachment process. They want to avoid an uncomfortable election-year discussion about President Biden’s biggest failure: the U.S. southern border invasion. Democrats will shatter another norm and set a dangerous precedent that they’re going to regret.”
  • 4/10/24 – Twitter: “The southern border invasion has inflicted pain and suffering on countless Americans. We’re obligated to figure out who’s responsible. When the House transmits the articles of impeachment against @SecMayorkas, we have a constitutional duty to hold a trial. https://t.co/vAD71uAzb6”
  • 5/15/24 –  Twitter: “An invasion of our country. The articles of impeachment for the man responsible, DHS Secretary Mayorkas, sit untouched by Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer, who violates the constitution to ensure Mayorkas is never held accountable and the border remains shattered.”
• Ted Cruz (R-TX)
  • 4/25/23 – Twitter: “With the end of Title 42 looming – absolute chaos will ensue at our southern border. President Biden doesn’t mind this, though. Every new illegal alien is a potential future Democratic voter. https://t.co/QOVmeCKSmJ”
  • 5/10/23 – Twitter: “President Biden and the radicals in his party are cynically playing politics with the lives of illegal aliens. Each person that floods through the southern border is a potential Democrat voter. #BidenBorderCrisis https://t.co/XXhgnONBGa”
  • 5/12/23 – Press Release: “Title 42 expired yesterday, and I traveled to the border with several colleagues to speak with the men and women of Border Patrol and the Texas National Guard. The crisis at our southern border has never been worse. Over 10,000 illegal aliens flow in daily, and that number will only grow with the expiration of Title 42. President Biden has opened our border without regard for the consequences, and we are experiencing an invasion. We can’t keep ignoring the reality of what is happening. We must secure the border.”
  • 5/15/23 – Twitter: “.@realDailyWire: Ted Cruz: Biden ‘Is Cheering’ On This ‘Full On Invasion’ At The Border, ‘They Want This To Happen’ https://t.co/K65uAiCQkp”
  • 5/15/23 – Press Release: ““There is a full-on invasion that is unfolding. We’ve seen for two-and-a-half years, the worst illegal immigration in history – six-and-a-half million people crossing illegally. And I’ll tell you, as we stand here tonight, hours away from Title 42 expiring, there are 22,000 illegal immigrants camped just south of the Rio Grande preparing to cross over. Every day this community and the entire southern border is being swamped – it’s being overwhelmed.”
  • 6/7/23 – Twitter: “The Biden White House has handed their agenda over to the crazies in their party. They don’t care about the suffering taking place at the southern border—every illegal alien is a potential Democrat voter. #BidenBorderCrisis https://t.co/L2s2u4sQIB”
  • 8/23/23 – Twitter: “The Biden administration is white washing the crisis at the southern border. Data shows that they’re sending fewer illegal aliens back across the border following the expiration of Title 42. Cynically to them, every illegal alien is a future democrat voter. #BidenBorderCrisis…”
  • 9/8/23 – Twitter: “In one day, 15,000 illegal aliens poured through the border into Laredo, where the town’s population is 30,000. Joe Biden’s open border policy has allowed crime and drugs to destroy our communities. #BidenBorderCrisis https://t.co/iWNl8CDQmc”
  • 9/19/23 – Twitter: “New York City’s mayor believes that 110,000 illegal aliens in his city is a crisis. Texas and southern border states are flooded with that many illegals every 12 days.Since Joe Biden took office, there has been an invasion of 7M illegal aliens through our border.#BidenBorderCrisis“
  • 9/28/24 – Press Release: “The invasion at our southern border is straining local services, overwhelming hospitals, and overcrowding schools.”
  • 9/29/24 – Press Release: “It is imperative that any government funding bill include real border security measures. The Secure the Border Act would stop the Biden Border Crisis dead in its tracks and halt the invasion at our southern border. I am proud to be the Senate lead of the most comprehensive border security bill in decades, and it should be added to the continuing resolution to ensure that our government is enforcing the law.”
  • 10/2/23 – Twitter: “If New York City can’t handle 110,000 illegal aliens, imagine what it’s like for Texas and the other border states that have seen an invasion of over 7 MILLION. #BidenBorderCrisis https://t.co/D85oZeOSiH”
  • 12/31/23 – Press Release: “Sen. Cruz introduced an amendment to add the Secure the Border Act to the continuing resolution to stop the Biden Border Crisis dead in its tracks and halt the invasion at our southern border.”
  • 1/20/24 – Twitter: “I never thought I’d see the day where the federal government not only intentionally breaks open the border, but tries to strong-arm states against securing it themselves. https://t.co/LGIN7F1NEH”
  • 1/26/24 – Twitter: “Joe Biden is defying federal law by allowing 9.6M illegal aliens to flood through our border. If the federal government won’t step up, Texas has the Constitutional authority to protect itself. I’m proud to stand with Texas and Governor Abbott as we work to stop this invasion. https://t.co/qtzi3u2LQ4”
  • 1/26/24 – Newsletter: “He wants more money to process illegal immigrants faster, to move even more of them to every city in America. He wants to take that 9.6 million and make it 20 million, make it 30 million, make it 40 million. It is an invasion, and Texas is bearing the brunt, but every community in America is paying the price.”
  • 1/26/24 – Twitter: “President Biden could solve the border crisis tomorrow. Instead, he’s chosen politics over safety. He has allowed 9.6M illegal aliens into our country—to him, each one is a future Democrat voter. https://t.co/wH7B821Qw4”
  • 2/8/24 – Twitter: “If Joe Biden wanted to fix the border with executive action, he already would’ve done that. We’ve seen the highest rate of illegal immigration ever under his leadership. They haven’t fixed the border because they view each illegal alien as a future Democratic voter. https://t.co/QnzyLzyDDb”
  • 2/13/24 – Press Release: “However, we must defend our nation first. I will vote to support aid to our allies, but only after America’s border is secured. No state bears the brunt of this burden more heavily than Texas, which is on the front lines of a literal invasion of millions upon millions of illegal aliens.”
  • 2/16/24 – Twitter: “Texas has been invaded. We need real solutions to the border crisis. https://t.co/GUNmnBmTqz”
  • 2/18/24 – Twitter: “Under Joe Biden, we’ve seen an invasion at the Texas-Mexico border. https://t.co/vgvncLniwK”
  • 2/20/24 – Twitter: “We are facing nothing short of an invasion at our southern border. The human suffering is indefensible — and it is deliberate. President Biden and the Democrats have destroyed the border. https://t.co/vhWLafQbZ1”
  • 2/21/24 – Twitter: “The Schumer-Biden border bill would’ve kept the invasion in place FOREVER.It wouldn’t have fixed the problem.This terrible legislation codified catch and release, granted work permits, taxpayer-funded immigration lawyers, and allowed for 1.8M illegal aliens to come annually. HR 2 would actually fix the problem!“
  • 2/28/24 – Twitter: “Joe Biden and the Democrats have decided to prioritize keeping the border open for 10.6M illegal aliens over the safety of Americans. Laken Riley would still be alive today if Biden didn’t view Jose Antonio Ibarra as a future Democrat voter. https://t.co/APL9WwdB5Q”
  • 3/7/24 – Facebook: “I’m headed over to the State of the Union Address right now — I expect a campaign speech from President Biden. He won’t take responsibility for the inflation he created or for the invasion at our southern border. He won’t say the names of Laken Riley or Jeremy Poou-Caceres — innocent lives taken by illegal aliens who should’ve never been in America to begin with.”
  • 3/7/24 – Twitter: “The Real State of the Union: Over 176,000 illegal aliens crossed the southern border in January. This is a full-blown invasion! https://t.co/gLH6ZoTOaq”
  • 3/10/24 – Twitter: “The people of Texas have seen what has happened at our border and it’s an absolute catastrophe. President Biden’s weak policies have caused the invasion of 10.4M illegal aliens. The pain and suffering are indefensible. https://t.co/130nDyTOPJ”
  • 3/22/24 – Twitter: “Joe Biden and the Democrats are allowing an invasion at our southern border. Texas has a right to defend its people. Sadly, every step of the way the Biden administration has undermined our state. This administration would rather side with the drug dealers and human traffickers”
  • 3/25/24 – Twitter: “We are facing an invasion at our southern border. Joe Biden’s policies have caused this. https://t.co/xEzKCyzmxX”
  • 4/10/24 – Twitter: “We are witnessing a profound threat at our southern border. Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and the entire administration have deliberately facilitated the criminal invasion of the United States. The border crisis is a public safety crisis, a national security crisis, and a humanitarian crisis. This is why the House has impeached Alejandro Mayorkas”
  • 4/10/24 – Press Release: “It’s not because he’s bad at his job, unfortunately Alejandro Mayorkas is very good at his job. However, he doesn’t view his job as securing the border [or] protecting our homeland security. Rather, he views his job as openly … violating and flouting federal law while aiding and abetting the criminal invasion of the United States.”
  • 4/13/24 – Newsletter: “That includes our border security. The illegal immigration crisis unfolding at our southern border is a deliberate invasion intentionally enabled by the Biden administration.”
  • 4/16/24 – Press Release: “Every year under Joe Biden and Alejandro Mayorkas, we have seen millions of illegal aliens crossing into this country. Alejandro Mayorkas is actively aiding and abetting the criminal invasion of this country by criminal drug cartels and illegal aliens.”
  • 4/17/24 – Press Release: “They care more about political clout than exercising oversight to investigate how Alejandro Mayorkas willfully aided and abetted the criminal invasion of the United States.”
  • 4/20/24 – Newsletter: “Under the reckless leadership of U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, our country has fallen victim to a criminal invasion at our southern border. Mayorkas has deliberately aided and abetted this invasion”
  • 4/23/24 – Press Release: “Finally, the decisive reason I could not support this bill is because it did nothing to secure the Texas-Mexico border. As I’ve said many times, we are facing an existential crisis—a full-on invasion—at our own southern border.”
• Tom Cotton (R-AR)
  • 1/3/24 – Twitter: “When Donald Trump was president, America was safe, strong, and prosperous. The economy was booming, working-class wages were growing, our border was secure, and our enemies feared us. With Joe Biden as president, everything has gone to hell: families can’t afford groceries, our border is wide open to a full-blown invasion, and our enemies are starting wars everywhere. I endorse President Trump and I look forward to working with him to win back the White House and the Senate so we can help hardworking Arkansans suffering from Joe Biden’s disastrous policies. It’s time to get our country back on track.”
  • 1/30/24 – Twitter: “Joe Biden could stop this invasion today— but he’d rather blame Republicans. https://t.co/8W5R6toN7y”
  • 2/11/24 – Twitter: “For two years, President Biden has said he’ll stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes. For three years, though, he’s allowed an invasion of nearly 10 million migrants to occur at our border. We can’t secure another country’s border before we secure our own. https://t.co/vykARuNiUB”
  • 3/4/24 – Facebook: “This is an invasion. Full stop. Thanks to President Biden’s open border policy, this is a crisis by design that puts Americans across the country at risk.”
• John Kennedy (R-LA)
  • 3/17/23 – Twitter: “Since Pres. Biden stopped protecting the U.S. border, there have been more than 4.9M illegal crossings into our sovereign country. That’s more than the population of Louisiana. Imagine an entire state trying to sneak into another country & its president letting it happen.”
  • 8/31/23 – Twitter: “I’ve been to Pres. Biden’s broken border, and I’ve seen his bad policies fueling illegal immigration. In July alone, CBP had 183,000+ encounters at the southwest border—that’s more than the population of the entire city of Shreveport. https://t.co/KaesnotUuE”
  • 9/5/23 – Twitter: “Since Pres. Biden took control of the southern border, he’s only weakened it. There have been 5.8 MILLION+ encounters with illegals in that time—that’s more than the individual population of most states.”
  • 2/29/24 – Facebook: “Since Oct., 20,000 Chinese immigrants have tried to break into America illegally through Pres. Biden’s broken border. Who knows how many Communist spies have already crossed into the U.S because of his love for the #openborder? – Chinese Nationals Surge Over Border Amid Ongoing Invasion”
• Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)
  • 1/24/23 – Twitter: “In December, there were more encounters at the southern border than the population of Knoxville or Chattanooga, Tennessee. Biden’s border crisis worsens month after month, year after year. https://t.co/ifH2lklGud”
  • 2/25/23 – Facebook: “On day one of his administration, Joe Biden paused construction of the border wall. Since then, the White House has intentionally implemented policies that allow drugs, smuggled migrants, and criminals to flow across the border unimpeded. What’s worse, they have repeatedly ignored our brave Border Patrol agents warning them of the danger and asking for a physical barrier. We simply cannot afford to let this crisis continue. Read about this legislation I cosponsored, which ensures that we finish building the U.S.-Mexico border wall.”
  • 9/22/23 – Twitter: “Almost 2.4 million illegal aliens have crossed the border so far in Fiscal Year 2023. This is nothing short of an invasion.”
  • 9/23/23 – Twitter: “Stop the invasion. Close the border. Restore law and order.”
  • 9/24/23 – Twitter: “The invasion along our southern border has continued to escalate under the Biden administration. https://t.co/Ui8Fxd0iYT”
  • 9/25/23 – Twitter: “In the past 24 hours, there were 11,000 encounters along the southwest border, marking the “single highest day in recent memory.” I’ve witnessed this crisis firsthand, and this is nothing short of an invasion. Republicans must fight to secure our border. https://t.co/4hrdRE5FsI”
  • 9/26/23 – Twitter: “A Texas developer has allegedly created an ‘illegal immigrant’ town equal to the size of Washington, D.C. by selling property to cartels. Stop the invasion. Secure the border.”
  • 9/30/23 – Twitter: “Border encounters in September reached the highest monthly total ever recorded — a staggering 260,000. This is truly the worst humanitarian crisis our nation has ever seen. Stop the invasion. CLOSE the border.”
  • 10/5/23 – Twitter: “Due to the influx of Venezuelans invading our country, the Biden admin is resuming deportations to Venezuela. Biden may have finally realized the extent of the crisis he’s created at the southern border.”
  • 10/6/23 – Twitter: “For the second year in a row, Border Patrol agents have apprehended over 2 million migrants at the southern border. That’s twice the population of Knoxville, Memphis, and Chattanooga combined. We are facing an invasion of unprecedented proportions.”
  • 10/6/23 – Twitter: “Last week, border encounters averaged over 10,000 per day for 5 days in a row. Our communities cannot sustain this invasion.”
  • 10/6/23 – Twitter: “Joe Biden recently asked in an interview, “What is it that these mega Republicans think is extreme about what I’m doing?” @POTUS — you don’t think allowing over 7 MILLION illegals to invade our border since taking office is extreme?”
  • 10/14/23 – Twitter: “An estimated 1,500 Hamas terrorists invaded the Jewish state and slaughtered over 1,200 Israelis. Since Biden took office, there have been 7.6 million total crossings along our southern border. What is Biden doing to prevent what happened in Israel from happening here?”
  • 10/30/23 – Press Release: “We must secure our country before it is too late. Israel – which arguably has the most prestigious intelligence apparatus in the world – did not see the October 7th invasion coming. Yet we’ve had three years to see what’s coming, and the administration has done nothing to stop it. We also have to examine the threat posed by foreign nationals in our country who may seek to do the Jewish community harm. To ensure the U.S. does not experience an atrocity akin to what took place in Israel, the Biden administration must reverse their disastrous immigration policies and take seriously the threat posed by anti-Israel extremists already here.”
  • 12/8/23 – Twitter: “Enough is enough. Build the wall. Stop the invasion. CLOSE the border.”
  • 12/19/23 – Twitter: “On May 11, the House sent H.R. 2 to the Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee has had 58 meetings since that time. They have chosen to NOT address the border. We have a crisis. We are being invaded. https://t.co/XHDYCwV6LH”
  • 1/11/24 – Press Release: “Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution provides for the protection of states “against invasion,” and Article I, Section 10 reserves the right of states to defend themselves.”
  • 2/6/24 – Twitter: “The CCP is giving immigrants the tools they need to invade the U.S. Yet another reason why we must stand up against the CCP and ban TikTok. https://t.co/YmEdMGGXbY”
  • 3/25/24 – Press Release: “Since Inauguration Day 2021, more than 9.2 million illegal immigrants have entered the United States, including over 1.7 million known gotaways. Meanwhile, the Biden administration deported just 142,000 people in all of 2023 – less than 5 percent of all illegal crossings. What is happening at the southern border is nothing short of an invasion.”
  • 3/26/24 – Twitter: “In Eagle Pass, TX, I heard from ranchers who have had their homes invaded by illegals aliens and seen horrific acts by smugglers & coyotes. This is inexcusable and preventable — secure the border. https://t.co/g0BpQR9n5C”
  • 4/10/24 – Twitter: “Every town is a border town under Biden. We must build the wall and stop the invasion.”Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)
  • 5/21/24 – Twitter: “Democrats are refusing to close the border because they want illegals to count towards the population for congressional district apportionment. They want to make illegal immigration legal”

Ranking Member Lindsey Graham, South Carolina 

• 6/21/21 – Twitter:”The southern border is in complete chaos, and the Biden Administration is not lifting a finger to stop what is going to become an invasion of illegal immigrants.”
• 7/20/22 – Twitter: “If the mayors of New York and Washington DC think it’s bad, imagine living in a border state which is Ground Zero of the illegal immigration invasion!”
• 10/20/21 – Twitter: “The policy changes by the Biden Administration have led to this invasion with no end in sight. Unless we go back to the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy of President Trump, migrants will continue to come by the hundreds of thousands.”
• 8/3/22 – Press Statement: “The refusal to fix our broken asylum system, the reimplementation of catch and release, the abandonment of Remain in Mexico, and other policy choices by the Biden Administration have acted as pull factors which directly led to a virtual invasion by illegal immigrants. It is only a matter of time until terrorists and other transnational criminal organizations take full advantage of these vulnerabilities.
• 7/19/21  – The Ingraham Angle​​: “Joe Biden wants to put  amnesty in the Democrat infrastructure bill that will lead to an invasion.”
• 5/19/19 – Press Statement: “We must change the underlying broken laws to stop what I think is an invasion at our southern border,” said Graham.  “We need to ask — who is in control here?  Us or the smugglers?  I hope Democrats will work with us to find a bipartisan solution.  This isn’t a hoax or a manufactured crisis.  It is real and serious.  Today’s introduction begins the debate on a fix.”
• 9/24/21 – Facebook Ad: “The Biden Administration has facilitated an invasion of illegal immigrants.”
• 7/21/21 – Fox News: “Amnesty in the Democrat infrastructure bill that will lead to an invasion.”
• 10/22/18 – Twitter: “President @realDonaldTrump
•  is right to put pressure on countries to stop the migrant caravans before they even start. He’s also right to request Mexico ensure they never reach the US border. Those nations who disrespect American sovereignty should and will pay a heavy price.”
• 6/21/13 – Twitter: “When people in South Carolina say ‘Secure the Border’ I get it. Corker-Hoeven is border surge & designed to help us regain over sovereignty.”

Chuck Grassley, Iowa

• 11/1/21 – Twitter: “Welcome 2 Pres Biden’s America where 10,000 pounds of fentanyl hv been seized by Customs & Border patrol so far this fiscal yr which is enough to kill over 2 billion ppl or more than 1/4 of the world’s population”
• 8/4/21 – Twitter: “Mexican cartels are pouring record amounts of hard drugs into USA In 2020 over 93,000 Americans died from drug overdoses That’s almost the entire population of Davenport The primary driver of this surge in overdose deaths is fentanyl coming in from Mexico SECURE THE BORDER”
• 8/3/21 – Twitter: “As a result of the Biden Administration’s irresponsible immigration policies CBP has encountered over 1.1 million illegal immigrants at the southern border during this fiscal yr That’s 5 times larger than the population of Des Moines”
• 6/30/21 – Twitter: “Border Crisis= Fentanyl Crisis So far in FY21 Customs &Border Patrol seized enough deadly fentanyl & analogues at southern border to kill over half of US population Biden admin+ Congress must secure border &permanently ban fentanyl & deadly knockoffs”
• 10/23/18 – RadioIowa: “I hope I made myself clear that I don’t consider civilians from other countries being a military force invading us, but they’re surely violating our laws,” Grassley says. “We’ve got a right to protect our borders.”
• 10/22/18 – Twitter: “PresTrump as commander in chief is right to defend country/borders & stop the attack on natl sovereignty from the 7000+ migrant caravan heading to USA. Not fair to legal immigrants going through proper LEGAL process We need to help Trump admin secure border+close immig loopholes.”
• 9/14/21 – Facebook: “Sign the petition to STOP Biden from housing ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS in your neighborhood!”
• 6/15/21 – Twitter: “Total border encounters in the last eight months totals 929,868 – more than four times the population of Des Moines, Iowa. https://t.co/C8g0XW6Yb7”
• 1/3/23 – Twitter: “.@POTUS is putting the sovereignty of the United States of America in peril by refusing to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and failing to secure the border. https://t.co/rYztMppZSV”
• 6/21/21 – Twitter: “Blanket amnesty and open borders are not sensible or sustainable for our sovereignty and national security.”
• 8/25/18 – Twitter: “The protection of American citizens and the sovereignty of the United States of America depends on effective, enforceable and accountable border security.” – @ChuckGrassley #oversight”

Mike Lee, Utah

• 8/19/21 – Twitter: “@SenRonJohnson and I will be submitting a detailed comment to Biden’s proposed open border regulation. It is shocking that any President would violate his oath of office and threaten U.S. sovereignty in this manner. Biden’s reckless action must be stopped.”

Ted Cruz, Texas

• 5/17/22 – Twitter Over 2 million illegal aliens streamed across the border last year. This is an invasion we’re seeing because Joe Biden refuses to enforce the law!

• 8/6/21 – Twitter: “If CNN really gave a damn about COVID, they’d come down to McAllen & see the THOUSANDS of illegal immigrants with COVID being released by the Biden admin without a care in the world into Texas cities & towns. There’s an invasion going on at the southern border but CNN is silent.”
• 7/1/19 – Twitter: “Stunning. In the past year, CBP has apprehended over 264,000 people here illegally just in the Rio Grande Valley Sector. That’s MORE THAN DOUBLE the entire population of McAllen. In ONE YEAR. This is a crisis & Congress needs to close the loopholes NOW. #EndDemObstruction”
• 1/5/16 – TV Ad titled: Invasion “the mainstream media covers immigration, it doesn’t often see it as an economic issue…it would be very very different if a bunch of lawyers of bankers were crossing the Rio Grande…we will triple the Border Patrol, we will build a wall”
• 4/2/21 – USA Today: “illegals arrive at the Border clean and refreshed after traveling 1,500 miles on foot…Why don’t they ever carry food or blankets? How do they charge their cell phones? Almost makes one think the Alien Invasion is orchestrated.” 
• 5/16/22 – Radio Mark Levin Show: “234,000 illegal immigrants crossed…highest rate in 60 years, it is an invasion”
• 9/20/22 – Southeast Texas Record: At the Texas Youth Summit, “It is a crisis, but it’s an even greater crisis in the rest of the country and especially Texas that is bearing the brunt of this massive invasion and that is seeing the human tragedy” 
• 9/22/21 – C-Span: “ They were packed under the bridge because the border patrol lack capacity…to put that in perspective the city of Del Rio has a population of 35,000 people. Nearly half the population of Del Rio was under the bridge.”
• 8/27/21 – Press Release: “After a year in which we had the lowest rate of illegal migration in over four decades, by the end of the year this administration will have orchestrated the illegal entry of as many as 2.3 million illegal aliens-the equivalent of the entire population of Houston, America’s 4th largest city.”
• 10/6/21 – Press Conference: “To put that in perspective, the population of McAllen is about 141,000. 5% of the city of McAllen consists today of illegal immigrants with COVID that Joe Biden released this year. It is a crisis. It is dangerous.”
• 6/18/21 – Fox News: “We’re seeing an assault on our sovereignty with the border not being defended. And today, my remarks are really a call for American revival…There are angry forces on the left that want to tear down all of the pillars of American democracy. And we’ve got to answer the call, and we’ve got to stand up and defend this great nation.”

Josh Hawley, Missouri

• 10/28/22 – Fundraising email: “For all the destruction that has come with the border invasion, its EXACTLY what Joe Biden wants.”  
• 12/16/22 – Fox News: “Of course, our border is wide open…more than five million illegal aliens have entered our country. That’s like adding the entire population of the state of Colorado to our country.”

Tom Cotton, Arkansas

• 9/16/22 – FoxNews, “Joe Biden has presided over a slow-motion invasion of our country since he took office”
• 9/16/22 – Twitter: “Biden has presided over an invasion of our country. But until a few days ago, the liberal media couldn’t care less about MILLIONS of illegal border crossings.”
• 12/16/22 – Fox News, “Since Joe Biden took office, more than 5 million illegal aliens have entered our country, that is like adding the entire state of Colorado.”
• 1/20/22 – Fox News, “Democrats — to include Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and others — do seem to care more about Ukraine’s border than our southern border at a time when we had 2 million illegal immigrants cross our border under Joe Biden’s tenure in office,” Cotton said. “That’s like adding the entire population of Nebraska to this country.”
• 1/26/22 – Fox News: “I think what the Department of Homeland Security has done to undermine American sovereignty, to open up our borders to undercut wages and jobs for American workers is probably the most egregious…and they’re open about it. [DHS]”
• 4/7/22 – Twitter: “The coming surge of illegal immigration is expected to reach 18,000 *every day*. That’s like adding the population of Atlanta every single month. There is no precedent for this lawlessness.”
• 2/15/23 – Twitter: “It’s shameful that the Biden Administration is lobbying for allowing illegal immigrants to vote in Washington, D.C. It’s a direct attack on our sovereignty.”
• 12/9/21 – Twitter: “Allowing non-citizens—including illegal immigrants—to vote in our elections is an attack on our sovereignty. New York City’s voting law is an insult to every American citizen.”
• 1/26/22 – Twitter: “Across many issues, Joe Biden has damaged America. But what his Department of Homeland Security is doing to undermine American sovereignty, open our borders, and undercut wages for Americans is the most egregious. And they’re proud of it.”
• 10/8/21 – Twitter: “Many of Joe Biden’s problems are caused by his incompetence. But not the border crisis. This attack on our fundamental sovereignty is by design.”
• 10/28/21 – Twitter: “The Biden Administration wants you to give $1 million to illegal immigrant families who broke the law. This is beyond open borders. It’s an assault on American sovereignty.”
• 1/31/22 – Twitter: “To the courageous border patrol agents fighting back: we stand with you. Help is on the way. When Republicans take power, we’re going to hold your corrupt leadership accountable for what they’re doing to our sovereignty.”
• 9/12/19 – Twitter: “This Supreme Court order is a huge victory for rule of law & our sovereignty, a huge defeat for open borders, asylum fraud, & Obama judges. Their campaign against immigration enforcement highlights the need for my new bill to stop nationwide injunctions.”
• 10/4/22 – Fundraising email: “Drug cartels and traffickers exploit the crisis every day, invading our country with toxic fentanyl…Today, Darin is fighting with me every day to secure the border, wage war on cartels and keep Americans safe.”

John Kennedy, Louisiana

• 8/20/21: Facebook Ad: “We’ve got to stop the border invasion we’re seeing under President Biden. Donate before midnight to help protect America!”
• 10/31/22: Fundraising email: “We can’t allow the Left to remain silent about the rot that eats at America’s great cities with crippling price increases, crime, lagging schools, deadly drug use, homelessness, and an invasion of illegal immigrants.”
• 3/17/23 – Twitter: “Since Pres. Biden stopped protecting the U.S. border, there have been more than 4.9M illegal crossings into our sovereign country.   That’s more than the population of Louisiana. Imagine an entire state trying to sneak into another country & its president letting it happen.”
• 3/24/23 – Press Release: “It is becoming harder and harder not to conclude that the border crisis intentional. . . . None of the president’s positions on this make any sense to me, unless I view it from the perspective of, well, maybe he wants this to happen.”

Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee

• 10/30/18: – During her 2018 campaign, Blackburn wrote an oped for the Tennessean titled, Migrant caravan is an invading force 
• 11/5/18 – Facebook Ad: “There is a right & wrong way to come to our country & the illegal alien mob marching on our border is an invading force that must be stopped. My opponent has doubled down on his belief that there is no threat & thinks the wall is “political theater.” On November 6th, the choice is clear.”
• 10/31/18 – Facebook Ad: “America is a nation of immigrants, and we embrace legal immigration. Everyone knows there is a right way and wrong way to come to the United States. The invading force approaching our southern border is seeking to enter the country the wrong”
• 10/5/22 – Twitter: “An illegal alien allegedly tried to overtake and disarm a border patrol agent on our southern border yesterday. This crisis has grown into an invasion and should serve as a wake-up call to Joe Biden and the rest of his administration.”
• 4/18/18 – Twitter: “Americans want security. Lawless sanctuary cities make no sense for a sovereign nation. We need to build that wall, end chain migration, end the visa lottery system, and cut off funds to sanctuary cities. And remember, no amnesty.”
• 1/24/23 – Twitter: “In December, there were more encounters at the southern border than the population of Knoxville or Chattanooga, Tennessee. Biden’s border crisis worsens month after month, year after year.”
• 5/10/22 – Twitter: “The Biden administration expects around 18,000 illegal immigrants crossing the southern border per day when TItle 42 is dropped. Nearly 92% of the towns in Chuck Schumer’s state of New York have a population of 18,000 people or less.”
• 11/1/18 – Twitter: “When you have a mob of foreign nationals marching behind a foreign flag – that’s an invasion. If they want to come here, they need to abide by the rule of law and do it the right way.”
• 1/23/23 – C-Span: “there were more than 250,000 which is the highest number of encounters at the southern border…that is more than the population of Knoxville, Tennessee. More than the population of Chattanooga, TN”